Golden Tee Golf Celebrates 25th Anniversary
Vernon Hills, IL (PRWEB) April 10, 2014 -- Golden Tee, the most successful coin-operated video game in history, celebrates its 25th anniversary in 2014. The full size video game is played in tens of thousands of bars and pubs around the world, and has a devoted and passionate player base. Every month, thousands of players spend millions of dollars competing against each other in Internet enabled tournaments, and some players are good enough to earn their living playing the game they love!
It's this love of the game that has fueled the Players Charity Championships. Since 2006, over $150,000 has been raised for charity, and to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Golden Tee, the Players Charity Championship IV will be held June 6-8, 2014 in Algonquin, IL. 128 players are expected to compete and raise over $100,000 to support three local nonprofit organizations.
Video Golfers for UnderDogs
The Golden Tee player community founded Video Golfers 4 Underdogs (VG4U), a recognized 501c3 non-profit organization, in 2004 as its charitable arm. Leading up to the tournament, players will create personal 'crowd-funding' web pages that friends, family, co-workers and others can visit to pledge donations. Jon Biedermann, Vice President of Video Golfers for UnderDogs, believes this event will be the most successful yet.
“We’ve learned a great deal from our past three charity events,” Biedermann said. “This year we plan to use that knowledge and experience in a variety of ways. We’ll have fundraising goals for each contestant, a silent auction, raffles, a ‘real golf’ tournament, and several other ways for members of the Golden Tee community to participate. Every tournament attendee feels passionately about this cause and the game.”
Benefiting Charities
The organizations that will benefit from the tournament are The Nikolas Ritschel Foundation of Rockford, Illinois; Salute, Inc. of Palatine, Illinois; and Starlight Children's Foundation of Chicago, Illinois. Kelli Ritschel-Boehle, Nikolas's mother and Executive Director of the foundation that bears his name, was very appreciative in her praise.
"One of Nik's last wishes was that we "take one step" to help young adolescent adults in their cancer journey. With the generosity and power of collaboration that Video Golfers for Underdogs has provided, our "one step" just became a giant step towards fulfilling our mission!"
The company behind Golden Tee, Incredible Technologies of Vernon Hills, Illinois, is assisting the players in helping make these events the most successful fundraising tournaments in the game’s long history.
“During the past 25 years hundreds of thousands of Golden Tee players have won over $55 million competing in our online tournaments,” remarked Elaine Hodgson, President of Incredible Technologies. “To see our players come together as part of the game's 25th anniversary celebration, and compete to raise money for such worthy organizations, is very gratifying. We knew our players had big hearts, but this is truly remarkable.”
Complementing the tournament action will be appearances by celebrities, a live and silent auction of one of kind Golden Tee and golf memorabilia, and a traditional real golf tournament.
Besides individual ‘crowd-funding’ player pledge pages, non-attendees will be able to make donations through Golden Tee’s Facebook and Twitter accounts.
An Official National Golden Tee Golf Tour Stop
Power Events Group, based in St. Louis, Missouri, runs the event as part of the National Golden Tee Golf Tour. Founded in 2009, hundreds of video golfers across the nation compete on tour, sharing in over $100,000 in prizes every year.
“We’re going to make sure that anyone who is a fan of Golden Tee will be able to participate and donate – even if they’re not playing in the tournament,” Biedermann said. “The event will be streamed live, and the professionals at Power Events Group make sure that the tournament runs without a hitch.”
For more information on the Golden Tee Players Charity Championship tournaments visit the official website at http://pcc2.donorpages.com/pcc4.
Players Charity Championship IV
June 6-8, 2014
Nero's Pizza & Pub
300 Eastgate Court
Algonquin, IL 60102
847-458-0282
About Video Golfers 4 Underdogs
Video Golfers 4 Underdogs, a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization, was founded in 2004 to support charitable causes in the U.S. and Canada. The organization raises funds by conducting Golden Tee Players Charity Championship tournaments and hosting other special events. These events have provided an avenue for Golden Tee players and fans throughout North America to give back to their communities. For more on VG4U and the Player’s Charity Championship IV, contact Jon Biedermann at [email protected] or visit the event website at http://pcc2.donorpages.com/pcc4.
About Incredible Technologies
Incredible Technologies is the largest manufacturer of pay-to-play video games in the United States. Their flagship product, Golden Tee Golf, is considered the most successful coin-operated video game in history with over $3 billion in earnings to small businesses.
Today, IT is diversifying into casino gaming, home entertainment products and mobile applications. Founded by Elaine Hodgson and Richard Ditton in 1985, Incredible Technologies is celebrating the 25th anniversary of Golden Tee in 2014. For more information visit the company's websites at http://www.goldentee.com and http://www.itsgames.com.
About Power Events Group
Power Events Group was founded in 2009 and created the National Golden Tee Golf Tour. Every year, hundreds of video golfers compete around the country for thousands of dollars in prize money and be named champion of Golden Tee Golf.
For more information on upcoming tour stops including the Player’s Charity Championship, visit the company's websites at http://www.peggtour.com
Adam Kramer, Video Golfers 4 Underdogs, http://pcc2.donorpages.com/pcc4, +1 (847) 870-7027 Ext: 203, [email protected]
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